Harvard Forest Citizen Science

Grade 4 visited Harvard Forest today and met with professional scientists to gain a deeper understanding of how data is gathered, analyzed, and applied over time, while also reflecting on their own role as contributors to real-world research. These interactions are reciprocal: scientists learn from the students’ observations and perspectives, while students gain insight into potential future pathways in science. Being immersed in the working landscape of Harvard Forest further enhances this experience, as students observe firsthand the fieldwork practices used to study the forests and ecosystems of New England.

This field trip was in connection with their year-long citizen science study called Buds, Leaves, and Global Warming in collaboration with scientists from Harvard Forest. This partnership connects our classrooms directly to authentic scientific research conducted through Harvard University’s forestry program, where researchers investigate how climate change is influencing the seasonal growth cycles of New England forests. By participating, students are contributing valuable observations to one of the nation’s longest-running climate datasets, built from more than three decades of continuous records!